Spohn OM Build (short scale - long post) - Final Images - 11.28.23 post

[Deliberate1]

Originally Posted by mountainguitar

Hi David-

Thanks for the update! There's a guitar in that bag thing.... wow! It makes for an interesting reveal when the time comes. Very cool!

I'm interested to see what's under the bag- how long does it stay vacuum sealed?

beth

Hey Beth, it does make for some mystery, no? Like one of those teaser ads with the car shrouded, and left to the imagination. I do not know how long the vacuum process lasts, but will report back with an answer from Max. In the meantime, two more images demonstrating the process.

Best to you.
David

[Aspiring]

Originally Posted by KevinH

Keep them in suspense. Best not to reveal too much this early in the date



That's an interesting method for side construction.

I have wondered why more luthiers choose to use the traditional string / clamps / springy bits of wood. Vacuum bagging is a great technique once you have your method sorted.

[Deliberate1]

I am updating this inaugural post with images of the completed rosette I just received from Max. He has been working on this feature for over a week - a painstaking task that, I think, is unique and handsome, with the one-piece mother of pearl inlay. Note that the body will have a Florentine cutaway which will integrate, visually, with the rosette extensions (see cutaway image above for doppleganger). The cutaway puts the rosette design in perspective.

The top Max selected may be the nicest top I have ever seen, even before it is finished. He sources them directly from a sawmill in Switzerland which he personally visits. The book-matched grain is just gorgeous, with copious silking and no obvious runout, a visual I do not like in most guitars. All in all, I am thrilled with the progress, which is justifyably deliberate (and I am cool with Deliberate....).

David

[KevinH]

That's a superb top. Really nice silking. And a beautiful rosette design to go with it.

[Deliberate1]

Friends, I have more images Max sent to me whcih are posted below. I have a new-found appreciation for the time and careful effort that this build process requires.
Enjoy!

David

[sinistral]

Those are some elegant braces! Max definitely has a distinctive bracing pattern.

[s2y]

Looking great! Looking forward to your observations.

[KevinH]

I sometimes forget how much of a work of art the interior of a well-built guitar is. It's exciting to see it coming together like this.

[Deliberate1]

Max is making real progress. Individual pieces of wood are now coming together as a guitar.

Obviously, is all about the eyes at this point - which are surely not disappointed. The wood grain pattern of the back and sides are hypnotic. And this is just after sanding. Max warned me not to freak out when I saw the circular rings on the back, which will disappear at some point. The three dimensionality of the grain is astounding. What initially drew me to this set was the grain pattern on the sides of the bout, the ones that have a speckled pattern, which are then superimposed on, or are under another dimension of figuring. I cannot even imagine what it will look like once the finish brings it all out and together.

The inlay is MOP from some razor clams Max found. I think they are a beautiful match, both in color and with a pattern that echoes the maple. The fretboard and bridge will be in wenge, with the binding in rosewood. No fretboard inlay, save for brass dot sidemarkers. I am getting used to playing guitars with this configuration, and there is a lot going on visually without the need for another design element. You can see the Manzer wedge in one of the images. While it will be a 12 fret, there will be a fretboard extentipn and Florentine cutaway for access. I think the body shape is very elegant - even sensuous.

Max tells me that the tap tone is very promising, which is good to hear, if you will. He has been terriffic to work with as I obsess about the specs, which will be 24.75" scale, 1.75" nut and 2.25" string.

Hope you enjoy the baby pics. I have done a bit of PS modification, and cannot represent the color is precisely as it appears in the images.Sanded 4 mod.jpg

Sanded 3 mod.jpg

Sanded 1 mod.jpg

David

[KevinH]

It's beautiful already, even at this young stage. Looking forward, as I'm sure you are, to seeing it with the finish on.

[mountainguitar]

what a gorgeous looking instrument this is turning out to be!! I'm excited for you! I'll look for more pictures soon... Hope you're enjoying a beautiful Maine summer!

beth

[Deliberate1]

Originally Posted by mountainguitar

what a gorgeous looking instrument this is turning out to be!! I'm excited for you! I'll look for more pictures soon... Hope you're enjoying a beautiful Maine summer!

beth

Beth, thanks for reaching out. As the wood turns into a guitar, I am getting more and more psyched. I am hopeful that it will all go Max's finisher next month and be in my hands, perhaps in October. That would be about a year from the order, and about 5 months to build.

I have been most fortunate to have one of Max's 00's to play with for the past several months. It has been invaluable as I pendulum among the build spec options. I am really loving the smaller box, short scale guitars these days, and have spent most of my time with Max's 00 and my own Webber 00 (24.5" scale). I have been crushing recently on country blues tunes by Mississippi John Hurt (Make Me Down a Pallet and My Creole Belle), and find the smaller guitars to be particularly amenable for that genre. While the guitar Max is building for me is an OM, it will have short scale (24.75"), 12 fret (with extended fretboard), Florentine cutaway and Manzer wedge. So a slightly larger guitar than the 00, but, hopefully totally comfy. I discovered that Max's default volute is uncomfortable, so he has offered me an alternate design with a more fluid transition into the headstock. And he is going to modify the fretboard edge to make thumb-overs easier on my recalcitrant thumb. That is what getting a custom guitar is about, I am discovering, and Max has been terriffic about addressing every concern that I have. He wants to make the best guitar he can that fits me. Very impressive and reassuring.

Thanks again for yours. I hope that it has been a healthy and great musical summer for you on the other side of the country from Maine.
Best,

David

[sinistral]

I saw a reference in another post to you playing your Spohn and did a double-take—I was about to ask if we some missed something in the build process!

That’s interesting about the volute shape. I took a look at the gallery on Max’s website, and the volutes do extend down almost even with the nut. My FE Tellier has a curved volute, but it ends at least 1/2” before the nut. Hard to tell from this photo, but it’s the best I have at the moment.



Good thing you had a chance to play one of Max’s guitars beforehand (no pun intended)!

Also, to me at least, an OM with a short scale isn’t an OM, it’s a 000…

[Deliberate1]

Originally Posted by sinistral

I saw a reference in another post to you playing your Spohn and did a double-take—I was about to ask if we some missed something in the build process!

Greets, mate. Hope all is well. It was very generous that Max made available a 00 to live with, as I had never even held one of his guitars before committing to the build. And, as you say, it has been very fortunate. I discovered details that would have been impossible to know without living with his guitar these past several months.

The stock volute is uncomfortable. The problem is likely mine, as I have a tendency to twist my left wrist into it - see image. But no worries. Max has offered the alternative design, as below. And an image of the rosewood binding I just received.

So, what is the status of your build with Michel? Have I missed posts about it?

Wish you all the best, Lefty.

David

[Guitars44me]

Originally Posted by sinistral

I just want to say that I love your eloquent prose, David. It sounds like you and Max have connected creatively, which means that that guitar will be even more special.

Very nice writing, and a super beautiful instrument too!

May it bring you mucho enjoyment and be a fabulous addition to your life.

Cheers

Paul